Hello,

I am having a hard time deciding which car to buy.

In Toronto, ON... Dealerships will hardly budge on the price of the Altima since they sell as many as they can get. However, they can make good deals for the Maxima. Basically, for a few thousand more (CDN), I can have the Maxima instead of the Altima. Both are automatics.

I already test drove both cars. The Maxima seems to be smoother and quieter compared to the Altima. The thing is, I really like the exterior looks of the Altima but hate the 'motorcycle' guages. As for the Maxima, the gauges are great and the interior feels and looks better, but I don't like the exterior but looks like a good 'sleeper' car. In terms of power (Maxima), it's hard to notice the 10 HP advantage but I did notice a more refined feel which I don't quite understand if both engines and automatic transimissions are the same!?

Anyhow, I guess everyone would be suggesting Maxima all the way. I hear a lot of good things about this car except for the dreaded paint chip problem. Does the Altima have the the same problem?

Thanks,

James

 

James,

Is the Altima 3.5 an auto or 5 speed? If it is an auto, definately get the Maxima. The fit and finish on the Maxima is much better than the new Altima and the ride of the GLE is smooth.

Heck the way dealser are giving great deals on the Max versus 2.5 years ago when I got mine, I would even give the nod to the 6 speed Maxima over the New Altima.

I also own a 1st gen 1994 Altima 5 speed that I love. The new Altima is not quite up to snuff in quality with the Accord and Camry. The engine is second to none, though.

 

I almost purchased a 3.5SE Altima until I sat inside of it: cheap materials, American made and the ugliest dashboard this side of the Suzuki Aero. Making matters worst was that I couldn't get the 3.5SE for less than a base Max SE.

As you're looking at automatics, I'd recommend the Maxima. In my experience, I really don't believe that the 3.5SE auto is as quick as the Max auto. (In one instance, I was able to beat a 3.5SE auto while driving a 99 Acura 3.2TL base model.)

Sidebar: I don't mean to sound traitorous but have you considered a 2K3 Accord V6? What you'd lose in performance (versus the Alt/Max) you'll more than make up for in quality.

Peace

 

Thanks Guys,

I hope I get more input but I think I narrowed down my choices to Maxima or Altima. So far, I'm leaning towards Maxima eventhough I like the exterior of the Altima more.

On a side note, I've test drove Camry, 03 Accord (all v6 automatics). I find the 03 Accord pretty good, but doesn't match the Maxima's transimission in terms of smoothness at WOT or 3/4 way.

The Camry is probably the quietest and smoothest ride, but it lacks in power. Top of the line Camry and Maxima are about the same price. When it comes down to the bottom line, I prefer Maxima b/c of POWER! I find that the Maxima ranks 2nd in terms of smoothness and quiet ride. I hope to decide in a month of so. It's hard to decide. It's going to boil down to performance and reliablitily. I'm reading about Maxima paint chip issues which is kind of scaring me. Other than that, Nissan seems to hold up well. :-)

Another factor is depreciation. Honda's and Toyota's just don't depreciate as much. Anyway,not too much of an issue, I plan to keep this car (whatever it maybe) for a long long time.

Thanks,

James

 

I was faced with the same question before I bought my altima 4 months ago. The question came down to better interior versus better exterior, I've personally never met anyone who would buy an ugly car with better interior versus a nice looking car with cheap interior. One car is at the end of it's cycle, the other just beginning. Buy a max now and this time next year when the 2004 max's come out, which look eerily similar to an altima, you're gonna kick yourself. You'll basically have a new car for 1 year. I'll have a new car until the end of the 3rd gen altima, which should be a good 4-5 years.

 

one more thing, there IS NO DIFFERENCE in HP

 

I've been driving a Maxima se for almost 6 year, and I just cant imagine trading for an Altima, it's a good car but the interior is no match, to my taste the exterior look a little on the fatty side, I think the maxima has better lines and it is more refined a much nicer car overall. I would say if you can afford the extra $$$, its a well spend money and I'm shure you wont regret it.

Good luck.

AA

 

In Hawaii, the dealers were not giving away Maxima's like some of the threads that I have read on the board. Because of the price, I did "settle" for an Altima. I really wanted another Maxima, but I do feel that I got the best I could with the money I had to spend. It sounds like your leaning toward the Maxima and that the extra cash is not a problem. Therefore, go for it brother! Get the Maxima!!

 

IMO, the interior is the place where you'll be spending countless hours. I don't think I could spend all that money for the Altima's "cheap" interior knowing that I could have had better for a few (if not the same price) thousand dollars more. Of course, I also prefer the exterior design of the Maxima so I may be slightly bias...

 

I'd gone thru same thing 3 months ago.
Test drove the 02 alty 7 times from end of last year, love it. Great looking, power, features and lots of goodies.
I was waiting for the 03 alty, expecting nissan will work out those little bugs and improve the cheap interior. At the same time, I took a maxima for fun, I'd say powerful still(actually felt that alty is stronger when take off), but a totally different feeling inside, more classy, better material. Maybe the exterior is not as sharp as alty but it keeps growing on me. My wife said: this Maxima looks good 2! Then I'm settled. The only thing missing is the RIS on altima, but add on a RSB works like charm.

For paint problem, all nissans and many other cars suffer the same thing!

Since max is at it's last model year, you certainly can take big advantage on the price of max...

I'd say you can't go wrong with either of them. and both of the cars have great forums! Good luck shopping!

 

You can always spruce up the exterior with a body kit, clear corners, shopping cart wing, etc.

For the interior, you can get leather, but there's no way to replace the cheap plastic. I saw one recently at a dealer and the interior plastics looked like crap. I've had tv dinner trays made of better quality plastic. Also, the cheap interior will result in more rattles, more chintsy sounds, and a general feeling of blah.

I'd take the Maxima over the Altima if for no other reason than that everyone else already has an Altima, albeit the 2.5 version. It's the next Honda Civic, 5 on every block.

 

How bout skip both and go with a Buick??

What you could do is maybe look to rent a Maxima for a week and see how you "adjust" to it so to speak? Yeah I know, "rent a max for a whole week??" This would help in 1) Feeling out the test drive and 2) Deciding whether you really like and will take the nicer interior of the Max over the nicer exterior of the Altima (to me, the Max's exterior is just as nice, if not nicer IMO, but that's just me)

Good Luck!

 

That's a great idea. I did this with my Durango and really got a feel for the car (SUV) more than I ever did on any test drive. Mechanically it was a big POS, but it was really fun to drive!

 

i test drove both the Altima 3.5SE and the Maxima and to me there was no decision to be made. the maxima is FAR superior in feel, quality of finish, and overall capability. i really think of the altima as a cheaper maxima replacement (better margins for nissan). they are nearly identical in size! In addition, i got my loaded max '03 for the same price as the BASE Altima 3.5SE.

cheers -

 

got my alty SE for $21.5K before TTYL

 

Thanks for all the feed back.

When I decide, will post an update.

Thanks again,

James

 

If you want good suspension that doesn't pitch and rolls on bumps, I would get Altima. Maxima's rear beam sucks.

I would have gotten Altima if only the interior was better.

 

I test drove both, the 3.5 alty and the maxima se, i found that the alty has a huge azz dashboard, the lsd isnt as good as the max's, the interior sucked compared to the max's. also, i found that altima had a bit more body roll (prolly because i tested the se maxima). i felt the difference very little. besides, HIDs own, and the max looks better.

just my 2cents

 

I was looking to buy a new Altima recently and had my heart set on one - until I sat inside. The interior is just so bad on those. I am not kidding when I say that the steering column lever feels better and of higher quality material on my 93 sentra than on the Altima.

The max is a MUCH nicer car.

 

You'll find that many of us Maxima owners looked at Altima's. I went to the dealership looking to buy an Altima, but persuaded myself to drive the Maxima. At the time I really liked the Altima's exterior and just liked the Maxima's. After test driving both cars for numerous hours the Maxima won hands down. I hated the Altima's dash. Especially since I was trading in a Ford Taurus and the Altima's interior looked similar. The interior and build quality of the Maxima is better than the Altima, but there's no doubt about it, either one would be a good choice.

 

OUCH!!